Panel circuit breaker



March 1936- o. 5. JENNINGS Re. 19,887

PANEL CIRCUIT BREAKER Original Filed April 20. 1929 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 INVENTOR A'TTORNEY llllllll'l Oliver 6. Jen/1011a IEI IEI

l l lur l- 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Original Filed April 20. 1929 INVENTOR 0// ver 5 Jenn/n AiTORNEY Re, 19,887 PATENT OFFICE.

PANEL CIRCUIT BREAKER Oliver-.8. Jennings, Mansfield. Ohio, assignor to Westinghouse Electric & Manufacturing Company, a corporation of Pennsylvania Original No. 1,872,296, dated August 16, 1932,

Serial No. 356,647, April 20, 1929.

Application for reissue April 12, 1934,- Serial No. 720,326

9 Claims. (Cl. 247-) My invention relates to distributing panel boards and particularly to circuit breaker panel boards wherein the branch and main line circuits are controlled by automatic circuit breakers adapted to open the circuit when severe overload and short circuit conditions occur.

Heretofore it has been the custom to provide the branch line circuits with a switch and a fuse whereby the branch line circuit may be disconnected from the feeder conductors by means of a switch, usually of the tumbler type, or by means of a fuse in the event that a short circuit occurs in the circuit in which the fuse is connected. when a fuse has been broken, it is usually necessary to have it replaced by an agent of the central station supplying the power or by an authorized agent of the apartment house or factory in which the panel board is installed. Considerable delay and inconvenience is frequently encountered in having the fuses replaced.

An object of my invention is to provide a panelboard arrangement wherein the main circuit and the branch circuits are controlled by automatic circuit breakers instead of the usual switch and fuse and wherein the operating handles for the circuit breakers are accessible to occupants of the building in which the panel board is installed, and whereby the service can be immediately restored by simply reclosing the circuit breaker, after it has been opened by an abnormal current condition.

A further object of my invention is to provide a circuit breaker panel board wherein ample venting facilities are provided for permitting the gases generated by the operation of the circuit breaker under abnormal current conditions, the venting system comprising a centrally disposed channel or flue into which the circuit breakers discharge the arc gases, the flue also serving to provide ventilation and a circulation of air past the circuit breaker units, thereby maintaining them at proper operating temperatures.

A further object of my invention is to provide a circuit breaker panel board, having the above noted characteristics, wherein the enclosures for the circuit breakers are fastened to the bases for supporting the circuit breakers by a means constituting a seal accessible from the exterior of the enclosure, but which is covered by the panelboard housing cover in such manner that they are inaccessible so long as the cover is in operative position. Unauthorized tampering with the circuit breaker units is thus precluded, for in order to obtain access to the circuit breaker mechanism, it is necessary to remove the housing cover and the enclosure for the circuit breaker after breaking the seal.

A further object of my invention is to provide a circuit breaker panel, wherein the circuit breaker units are assembled upon a frame structure within the housing and wherein each separate unit may be removed from the housing without disturbing the others; thereby rendering replacement of thecircuit breaker units when desired without interrupting the service controlled by the remaining circuit breakers.

A further object of my invention is to provide a circuit breaker panel board that is compact and readily accessible and which requires less space than the usual panel board employing switches and fuses.

These and other objects that will be made apparent throughout the further description of my invention are attained by means of the apparatus hereinafter described and illustrated in the accompanying drawings, wherein,

Figure 1 is a plan view of a circuit breaker panel board with the door removed for the purpose of disclosing the interior structure,

Fig. 2 is a transverse section through the panel board shown in Fig. 1, disclosing the circuit breaker units in elevation, and partially in section, and

Fig. 3 is a transverse section through a circuit breaker unit showing the circuit breaker in elevation.

Referring to the drawings, the circuit-breaker panel board comprising a metalhousing I having a bottom wall 5, side walls 6 and end walls I, the side and end walls being provided with an inwardly extending flange B, to which the cover or trim 9 is detachably secured by any preferred means. The cover or trim ii is provided with an opening I i through which the panel board circuit breakers are accessible, the opening ll being closed by a door II, that is hinged to the trim 9.

The feed conductors l3, I4 and I5 of a three wire current supply system enter the lower end of the housing I from the conduit ii, the conductors l3 and I4 being connected to the main circuit breakers i1 and I8 having terminals l9 and 2| respectively, connected to bus bars 22 and 23 respectively, while the conductor I5 is connected to a neutral bus bar 24 mounted in the upper portion of the housing as indicated in Figure 1 and which is provided with a plurality of branch line binding posts 25, to which the return conductors. of each branch line circuit are connected.

A branch line circuit breaker 26 isprovided for each branch line circuit, the circuits being arranged in pairs and the circuit breakers thereof being connected to separate feed conductors 22 and 23. Where more than two branch line circuits are provided, the circuit breakers 28 are arranged in pairs in side by side relation and constitute two vertical rows of circuit breakers, as indicated in Figure 1. while the branch line circuit breaker 26 is herein illustrated as of the single-pole type, it will be evident that multiinterchangeable, the'adjacent dads being made tooverlap,asindicatedinl"lgrn'el,andtheblocks aretiedtooneanotherbymeansofscrewsli. that extend through an insulating barrier block ll into metal threaded inserts l2.

'lhebaseblocksltafterbeing connectedto by means of adjustable clamps 84.

The circuit breaker employed may be of any preferred-construction, and for the P p se of illustration, I have shown a circuit breaker of the type disclosed in my opending application, Serial .No. 856,846,111 April 20,1929. now Patent No.

1,794,001, and assigned to the Westinghouse 1 Electric and Manufacturing Company. Since no claim'isspeciilcallymadetotheformofcircuit breaker, a brief description only will be given as indicating the character of the operation.

Acontactterminaltlismwntedintherecess Itofthebasellandisconnectedtothebusbar itwhlchextendsthrougharecessllinthebase II,fby meansctscrews 31. Ametal frame Ills mountedu'ponthebaseflandsupportsaiiexlble swltch armllthatisattachedto'anarmll that is pivotally mounted on the pivot shaft 42 carriedbytheframe a. Theoperatingleverll provided with ,lspivotally mountedforrotationupona shaftflalsocarried on the frame 30." A toggle carrier 40' of inverted V-shape is pivotally mounted upon the pivot shaft tlcarrledupontheframellandservestosup- ,port a link of a toggle that is pivotally cmi-.

nectedtotheswitcharmthroughthemediumof a second toggle link 4l-,,the toggle links being pivotally connected by a knee pivot shaft II, to

which a spring I! is connected at one end, the

.other-end-of the springbeingconnectedtothe' operating lever 48.

Thetoggl'ecarrleruisreleasablyretainedin operative position by a bimetal thermostat latch ls'thatis carried in thebranehline circuit and which bends toward the left when, heated and which releases the toggle carrier it when a severe overload or short circuit occurs. It will be noted thatwhenthecircuitbreakerisin-theposition indicatedlnl'igure3;3lcarrying thecontactllisretainedincloeedposition by theltraight position of thetoggle'llnks lland II. llovementottheoperatingha'ndlefltotheleft movestheupper'endof'thespring Iloveracen between the knee pivot ll andthepoln llatwhichthetosglelinkllengagesthetoggle carrier 40. Thlst causes thetoggl linkstocollapeeandthespringllthen'causcsthe switcharmlltobemovedtoopenpositionwitha snap action.' Normal manual operation of the circuit breakeris bymovingthe operatinghandleutotherightortotheleftas Whenthetogglecarrierllisrelea'sedbyreason or themovement of the bimetal thermostat latch ll, the-spring l2 contracts and causes clockwise rotation of the toggle carrier 4 which permits the switch arm I! to move to the'open position with a snap action, thereby interrupting the circultin response to an abnormal current condition.

An insulating cover BI is provided for enclosing the circuit breaker apparatus and this cover is provided with an opening ll adjacent the circuit breaker contact .4. through which the gases generated by the arc incident to separation of the circuit breaker contacts escape.

The cover It is provided with a slot I'I through which the operating handle 44 extends and-the handle is provided with arcuate extensions II which serve to cover the slot 61 and prevent access to the mechanism beneath the cover through the slot l1 and prevents the escape of arc gases through the slot. I

Thecover Ilisattachedtothebasel'lby means of a screw I! that extends through an opening ii in the cover into a threaded metal insert 62 embedded in the insulating block 21. .The opening I is enlarged at ii to receive the head of the screw and to also receive a compound 64, such as sealing. wax. By reason this construction. in order to gain access to the circuit breaker it is first n to break the sealing wax and remove them ll.

Referring tovthe drawings. it will be noted that when the covers "are in assembled position upon the base blocks 21 to constitute a circuit breaker unit, a space is provided between the covers 56 that is divided by barriers II on each base unit 21, thus dividing the space into two separate dues or conduits 8i and It, the. former communicating with all of the openings 60 in the covers 88' mounted on the left side of the barriers SI 'and the conduits Bl communicating with the openings ill of the covers mounted on the right side of the barriers II. The con-' .dults i5 and 86 are closed by a cover plate I! that engages the outer faces of the covers II and is secured in place by screws 68 that are threaded into insert 69 in the barrier blocks 3|.

The gases discharged through the openings II in the covers. enter the conduits 6i and i0, and

are conducted vertically to the upper end ot. the

housing, and suillciently' cooled that they can do no damage to the apparatus within the housing.

-that terminates in grooves i2 provided in the upper!acesoithecovers56,anditwillbeobserved that the seals which fasten the cover to the base blocks lie behind and beneath the flanges II which render the seals inaccessible so long as the cover 9 is in assembled position.

It will be understood that access to the circuit breaker operating handles 44 may be had through the opening ii in the cover 9 and that the cover is in no case removed execept by authorized agents 0! the central station supplying the current to the panel board. Since the seals are rendered inaccessible to unauthorized persons, the covers ior'the circuit breakers cannot be removed without improper tampering with the panel board and because the circuit breakers are sealed in place, the manufacturers can guarantee the circuit breaker apparatus so long as the seal or the cover is'not broken.

It will be imderstood that the main circuit breakers are similar in construction to the branch linev circuit breakers, except that the capacity thereoi is greater and they are or larger and heavier construction.

Itwillbeseeniromthetoregoingthatihave provided a simple and compact automatic circult breaker panel board assembLv that is capable oi expansion to accommodate any desired numberotbranchlinecircuitsandthatapanei board construction has been provided wherein proper ventilation is aiiorded andwherein the circuit breakers are rendered tamper-proof.

While I have illustrated-but one embodiment of my invention, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that various changes, modifications, substitutions, additions and omissions may be made in the apparatus illustrated without departingtromthe spiritandscopeoi myinvention as set forth in the appended claims.

I claim as my invention:

1. A circuit breaker panel comprising two spaced rows at enclosed circuit breaker units dis posedside-by-sideineachrowandhavingthe adjacent ends of 'the enclosure provided with openingscommunicating with the spacebetween' therowsandaciosureiorthespacebetweenthe rows constituting a conduit for conducting arc gasesdischargediromthe said openings.

2. A circuit breaker panel comprising two spacedrowsoidmiitbreakersdisposedside-bysideineachrowandeach'unithavinganenclosurei'orsm'roundingitprovided withanopeningi'ortheescapeoi'gasescommunicatingwith thespacebetweentherows,aclosureiorthespace betweentherowscooperatingwiththeenclosure toconstitute aconduit for conductingarcgases dischargediromthesaidopeningaandabarrier extending'longimdinally oi the conduit dividing itintotwopassageaeaohiorreceivingthegases iromtheenclosuresotseparate rowsoi circuit breakerunits.

8.Acircuitbreakerpanelcomprisingapiurality of panel units arranged side-by-side and each comprising a pair of cooperating intereaehbasehavingarc drawing contactsdisposed neutheadjacentendsotthebaseaanenciosure iorsurronndingeachcircuitbreakerandmounted upon the said bases and having their adJacent ends spaced apart and provided with openings iorthedischargeoiarcgaseaandacoverclosing thespaoetherebetweencooperatingwiththoenchangeableinsulatingbaseaacimuitbreakeron' closures for constituting with the enclomres a conduit for receiving gases from said openings.

4. A circuit breaker panel comprising a housing, a plurality of circuit breaker units within the housing, each comprising a base, acircuit breaker mounted thereon, an enclosure for the circuit breaker and means for attaching the enclosure to the base constituting a seal accessible from the exterior of the enclosure, an operating handle for the circuit breaker accessible from the exterior oi the enclosure, a cover for the housing having an opening therein through which the units of each row being disposed side-by-side and each constituting a separate chamber having a vent opening into the space between the said rows, and a circuit breaker within the chamber having. its contacts adjacent the vent, a cover for the space between the rows cooperating with the units and constituting therewith a closed common conduit into which are gases are discharged from the circuit breaker units.

6. A panel-board comprising a plurality of circuit breaker units disposed in side-by-side relation in a substantially vertical row, each unit having an enclosure provided with an opening for the discharge oi arc gases from the are drawing contacts of the circuit breaker, and means including a continuous barrier disposed opp s te the said openings and cooperating with said units to form a substantially vertically extending due for conducting the discharged gases from the circuit breaker units.

'I. A circuit breaker panel comprising a housing, a plurality of circuit breaker units within thehousing,eachcomprisingabase,acircuit breaker mounted thereon, an enclosure for the circuit breaker and means for attaching the enclosure to the base; an operating handle for the circuit breaker accessible from the exterior oi the enciosure,.'and means for covering said attaching means and preventing access thereto so longas the cover means is in position.

8. A panel-board comprising two spaced rows of circuit breaker units disposedin side-by-side relation in substantially vertical aiinement, each unit having an enclosure provided with an openingim'thedischargeoiarcgasestromthearc drawing contacts of the circuit breaker, and means including a continuous barrier. disposed betweensaidrowsoicircuitbreakerunitsand cooperatingtherewithtoiormapairoisubstantialiyverticallyextendingiiuesiorconductingthe dischargegases'iromthecircuit breaker units.

9. Apanel-boardcomprisingaplurslityoi circuit breaker units disposed in side-by-side relation in a substantially vertical row. each unit having an enclosure provided with an opening iorthedischargeolarcgasesi'romthearcdrawouvaa s. .mmmas.

circuit breaker panel comprising two 

